Manipur's Ambekar Meetei wins India's first Youth Olympics boxing gold
The boxer defeated Ireland's Kristian Jubani 3-2 in the men's 50kg final at the Dakar Youth Olympics.
Lairenlakpam Ambekar Meetei won India's first-ever gold medal in boxing at the Youth Olympics in Dakar, Senegal, on Thursday, according to India Today and Sportstar. The boxer from Manipur defeated Ireland's Kristian Jubani 3-2 on points in the men's 50kg final.
Meetei, who trains at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala, had to recover from a difficult first round where all five judges awarded the round to Jubani. He won the second round with three of the five judges scoring in his favour, before earning the verdict from four judges in the final round to secure the victory.
Before the final, Meetei defeated Colombia's Izzon Jeffrey Galea Arevalo 5-0 in the semifinals on Wednesday, as reported by The Sentinel. He also stopped Namibia's Abraham Kalenga in his quarterfinal bout.
This gold medal is India's first top spot on the podium at the Dakar Games. Prior to this win, the Indian contingent had collected three silver medals in badminton, judo and beach wrestling, and five bronze medals in swimming, the women's 100m hurdles and Wushu.
Meetei's achievement is the third medal for India in Youth Olympics boxing, following Shiv Thapa's silver in the 2010 Singapore edition and Vikas Krishan's bronze at the same Games. Gunjan is scheduled to compete in the women's 48kg final.